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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. pound — a weight
  3. race — humankind
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — from a university
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. degree — temperature
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — a stick
  11. race — a contest
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. race — the arms race
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. tear — from crying
  17. staff — employees
  18. racket — for tennis

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com